Edited to add: And don't forget that there is always the option of getting up and moving away from the pet. You don't want that cat on your lap and don't know how to pick her up and move her off? Try standing up. I assure you that the cat will hop off when you start to move. (At least, mine will) You don't have to force a you vs the pet showdown.

I think that is what a lot of the pet owners on this thread are getting at.

I would view standing up and dumping a cat off my lap as much harsher than tapping it on the nose.

And my very loving never bitty , never clawy cat would shred you. Not out of angry just trying not to fall. Our guests don't know all of our pets idiosyncrasies , they try what they think is normal and will work. There are what 5 different ways in just this thread people us to tell their own dogs to not to jump? I think a nose tap = let go of my hand is within the range of normal interaction , I'm not going to even call it discipline its more communication then discipline. The cat wasn't wrong to think the person was playing but the person wasn't wrong either not to know "If i make a shooing motion the cat will think I'm playing and try to catch my hand."

I've been hit pretty hard by cats. They can pack a pretty good punch when they want.

I was reading the newspaper while sitting in a recliner chair when Edgar (our now long gone orange tomcat) walked up my body, starting at my knees. I put the newspaper down because I made the (mistaken) assumption that he wanted some attention.

Instead he hit me with his front paw so hard that he knocked my glasses off my face an onto the floor. He then proceeded to stomp back down my body and leave.

The food dish was empty and this was his version of giving me the "incentive" to fill it.

Any tap I've done on a cat head has never been anything other than a tap and certainly not hard enough to send anything flying!

If a cat jumps up in your lap and you're not interested, why would you stand up and dump them? What's wrong with just lifting them down?

If you are already unfamiliar, uncomfortable or downright scared of them then you might not know how to pick them up or might be frightened to do so.

If that's the case (and I used to be very phobic of cats as a kid) I'd tell the host the cat was making me nervous and to please remove it. Just standing up and attempting to dump them off your lap is a pretty good way to startle them into latching on and scratching you.

If a cat jumps up in your lap and you're not interested, why would you stand up and dump them? What's wrong with just lifting them down?

If you are already unfamiliar, uncomfortable or downright scared of them then you might not know how to pick them up or might be frightened to do so.

If that's the case (and I used to be very phobic of cats as a kid) I'd tell the host the cat was making me nervous and to please remove it. Just standing up and attempting to dump them off your lap is a pretty good way to startle them into latching on and scratching you.

Yup. Out of our two current cats, if one is sitting on you and you move to get up, she'll jump down; the other will panic and hang on. You have to gather her up and move her off you first.

I've been hit pretty hard by cats. They can pack a pretty good punch when they want.

I was reading the newspaper while sitting in a recliner chair when Edgar (our now long gone orange tomcat) walked up my body, starting at my knees. I put the newspaper down because I made the (mistaken) assumption that he wanted some attention.

Instead he hit me with his front paw so hard that he knocked my glasses off my face an onto the floor. He then proceeded to stomp back down my body and leave.

The food dish was empty and this was his version of giving me the "incentive" to fill it.

Heavens ! And I thought my brother's cat was assertive in letting people know when he wanted feeding...

I don't personally see an issue if you want your dogs on your couch. But since people constantly say "My pets are like my children!" then I think the same rule applies. You wouldn't (I hope!) let your child jump on me and lick me and sniff me and stick their head in my purse. If your child did any of those things, I would tell them not to, and that wouldn't be me disciplining your kid.

If your dog is just sitting on the couch on the far end, not bothering me at all, I'd be in the wrong to tell them to get down. But as soon as they start to be on me, I get to say something because I do not want a dog on me.

I don't personally see an issue if you want your dogs on your couch. But since people constantly say "My pets are like my children!" then I think the same rule applies. You wouldn't (I hope!) let your child jump on me and lick me and sniff me and stick their head in my purse. If your child did any of those things, I would tell them not to, and that wouldn't be me disciplining your kid.

And to extend that idea, some PPs have said that their pets are residents of the house and therefore have free rein of the house, even when company is there. Well, my children are residents of my house, but I have no problem with limiting them to a certain area of the house when I have guests over. I remember the same thing when I was a child: my parents had many dinner parties during which expected to stay upstairs. Perhaps this is why I am perfectly willing to put animals away when guests are over- I don't give them any more freedom than I would a small child.

I don't personally see an issue if you want your dogs on your couch. But since people constantly say "My pets are like my children!" then I think the same rule applies. You wouldn't (I hope!) let your child jump on me and lick me and sniff me and stick their head in my purse. If your child did any of those things, I would tell them not to, and that wouldn't be me disciplining your kid.

And to extend that idea, some PPs have said that their pets are residents of the house and therefore have free rein of the house, even when company is there. Well, my children are residents of my house, but I have no problem with limiting them to a certain area of the house when I have guests over. I remember the same thing when I was a child: my parents had many dinner parties during which expected to stay upstairs. Perhaps this is why I am perfectly willing to put animals away when guests are over- I don't give them any more freedom than I would a small child.

If there is a good place to put them away, I would agree. Growing up, if we had guests that weren't fond of cats, the cats got turfed to the basement. Lots of room to roam; their litter and food was down there.

But my current home is open concept and the basement is cathedral ceiling to the upstairs; there is no way to put my cats away and still give them decent room to roam. And without having to relocate food, water and litter. I'm not sure what I'm going to do when I go to renovate my kitchen, as the one cat will absolutely make a pest of herself with the workmen and will try to get out. The other one will just hide so I'm not too worried about her.

And I've just thought of a warmer weather solution! I could put her in the garage, with food, water, litter and sleeping arrangements. She won't like it very much but she'd be safe. She's already spent one night out there when I didn't realize she got past me when I ran the garbage out. She was out there about than 12 hours with no food, water or litter. She'll hide, too, so I didn't think anything of not having seen her. Smart kitty did her business in the paper recycling box on top of the newspaper that was in there.

Logged

After cleaning out my Dad's house, I have this advice: If you haven't used it in a year, throw it out!!!!.